The FREE Gift of Learning

If you happen to find yourself with some down time during our upcoming break (or any other time), check out the Apple Store's FREE training sessions! The Apple content consists of:

• Photography
• Video
• Music
• Coding
• Art/Design
• Health/Fitness

Access the TODAY AT APPLE link and click the LOCATION to find the store closest to you:

Click the button on the page

Click the FILTER option at the top of the page:

Select the preferred TOPICS, SESSION TYPES, and TIME on the SEARCH form:

** Be sure to look at the TEACHERS topic **

Click the DETAILS button:

Click SIGN ME UP:

Enjoy your FREE class!

Hour of Code

Why Hour of Code?

Students of all ages and abilities benefit from learning about computer science. Learn more about Hour of Code taking place December 9-15 with this short video clip below.

When is the Hour of Code?

The Hour of Code takes place each year Computer Science Education Week.  The 2019 Computer Science Education Week will be December 9-15, but you can host an Hour of Code all year round. 

Why Computer Science? 

Every student should have the opportunity to learn computer science. It helps nurture problem-solving skills, logic, and creativity. Check out this short video. 

Where Do I Start? 

iOS

Kodable (49 free levels)
CargoBot
BlueBot
Daisy the Dino
Lightbot Code Hour
Scratch Jr
Box Island
codeSpark
Swift Playgrounds

Web

Code.org Activities
The Grinch Hour of Code Game
Seesaw Webinars on Computer Science

Unplugged ( No computer necessary) 

Red Black Mind Mold Activity
Binary Bracelets Activity

Need Teacher Resources? 

Hour of Code Information Sheet
Hour of Code Participation Guide





Sign up with Hour of Code here to be entered into Code.org drawings for great classroom prizes!!

Tweet your Hour of Code!

#EDTechKISD and #HourofCode

You are going to 💗 the Novel Effect App!

A few months ago, a friend mentioned the Novel Effect App and said I should look at it. Oh. My. Goodness. As a teacher with early childhood and elementary experience, I fell in 💗💗. 

If you teach in a lower-level classroom, you need this. And hopefully I can give our upper-level teachers a reason to use it too. Game changer for class read-alouds!

Novel Effect is a free app from the iOS App Store or Google Play for Android. 

Music and sound effects follow along as you read your favorite children's books aloud with Novel Effect. The library consists of 200+ children's books and poems and the creators continue to add to it weekly.

How Does It Work?

Smart voice recognition stays in sync with your reading.

1. Choose a book inside the app- some of the book options are eBooks. Locate a physical copy of the book, unless using an eBook.

2. Press play on your device and begin reading the book.

3. Watch the delight on your students' faces! (The app is listening for 'trigger' words to play background music or sounds.) 

Here are a few of its upper-level selections:

As of late September, Novel Effect includes some of its most loved titles in Spanish. Here are just a few:

Ready to hear it in action?

Giraffes Can't Dance by Giles Andreae
The Gettysburg Address Abraham Lincoln

Setting Work Hours in Google Calendar

Have you recently invited a colleague to a calendar event during the school day, but see a icon indicating they are off hours during that time (and you know they are not)?

It may be because they need to set working hours in Google Calendar. Here's how:

My Files in Kcloud

My Files is your place to access, edit, and store ALL of your files and folders located on your cloud drives from any device.

You have the ability to connect your cloud storage applications you already use such as Google Drive, Dropbox, Office365, and OneDrive. You will be able to see all of your files and documents that you work on at school. You can view, edit and save these files, from ANY device, instantaneously.

To Enable click the My Files at the bottom of your KCloud page:

Then choose the cloud service you would like to connect by clicking Connect:

Once Connect is clicked it will prompt you to choose an account if you have multiple or sign in:

It will then prompt you to allow Classlink to access your Google Account:

After you allow access you should see the service connected and access to your files:

Your Teacher Toolbelt needs Edpuzzle!

EDPUZZLE is a digital video tool that allows you to integrate:

• formative assessment checks,
• audio commentary, or 
• written comments into any video you choose!

Edpuzzle has teacher contributed content that you can ASSIGN or COPY and EDIT. It also has the ability to UPLOAD any video that you currently use for learning and create your own questions.

Start using Edpuzzle with a few, easy steps:

1. Create a TEACHER account

2. Sign up using Google

3. Search for content and preview OR 

4. Copy and edit content to create your own questions and comments

5. SHARE or ASSIGN content to your students

Experience Edpuzzle:

Click here or on the image below to watch a video about using edpuzzle - you will experience custom stops with further information and formative assessment checks!

**Edpuzzle FREE allows a teacher to store up to 20 videos in their library at a time. When using the free version, you can delete videos you are no longer utilizing to make room for more.**

_____________________________________________

1️⃣ MORE amazing thing about Edpuzzle...
it integrates with Google Clasroom! 

Here is a short video clip about Google Classroom rostering, assignments and grading integration. You read that correctly! It grades and passes the grade back to Google Classroom. 

_____________________________________________

Already in ❤ with edpuzzle? Click here for a Chrome Extension that allows you to take any YouTube video right to edpuzzle! 

Random Student Generator with Google Classroom

Do you ❤️ interaction with your students and classroom participation?
Do you ❤️ Google Classroom?

If so, you will love Random Student Generator with Google Classroom. The Chrome extension allows teachers to quickly select a class from their list of classes in Google Classroom. The generator then simply displays a random student name alleviating student concerns of fairness!

FIRST - Instal the Extension

1. Go to the CHROME WEB STORE
   
2. Search for RANDOM STUDENT GENERATOR FOR GOOGLE CLASSROOM
   
3. Click 
4. Click 

SECOND - Run the Generator

1. Be sure to be in GOOGLE CLASSROOM
2. Click the  tool in the top, right corner of CHROME
3. Select a Classroom:
   
4. View the STUDENT NAME that is generated as a pop up:
   

Settings

Be sure to click the SETTINGS GEAR found in the bottom, right corner of the extension window for available settings (as apps and extensions receive improvements periodically):

NEW Quizzes in Canvas

Yes, you read that right, there's a NEW Quizzes feature in Canvas.

What is NEW Quizzes? NEW Quizzes is an assessment engine that integrates with Canvas, gives you  a cool variety of question types, and displays in the ASSIGNMENTS page.

NEW Quizzes has a 'Hot Spot' question type where students indicate an answer by clicking a specific area of an image AND the option to add a 'Stimulus' to your questions.

Before using NEW Quizzes in a Canvas course, you MUST  turn it on in Settings for each course.
Here's how:
1. Open your course
2. Go to Settings in the course navigation (left side of the screen)
3. Choose Feature Options at the top
4. Turn ON New Quizzes

Another important thing to keep in mind with NEW Quizzes is that they will originate from ASSIGNMENTS, not Quizzes. Look for the new button, +Quiz/Test once you are in ASSIGNMENTS to add a NEW QUIZ. 

Watch this video from Canvas to get started:

Check out all of the question types in NEW Quizzes here.

Do you have a Canvas Quiz you want to migrate to NEW Quizzes? You can and it's easy! Find out how here.

Assign Your Assignments in Canvas

A few weeks back, we blogged about Canvas: MODernize Your Canvas with MODules. We are following up with Post #2, Assign Your Assignments in Canvas.

Assignments in Canvas can be used to challenge students' understanding by using a variety of media and can:

• assess achievement;
• include online submissions;
• be easily differentiated;
• be set up for peer review; &
• so much more!

Assignments can be added through the ASSIGNMENTS link in the course navigation 

or through MODULES in the Course Navigation if you've built your course using modules.

Here is a short tutorial on Adding an Assignment in Canvas:

Need more details? Locate a Canvas Help video Overview of Assignments here. Locate Canvas Help Documents on Assignments here.

Zoom...Coming SOON to a Device Near You

Zoom Video Communications

Zoom is a cross-platform communication tool that Keller ISD has adopted and is using frequently to address technical computer needs, instant messaging, and to host video conferences for reasons such as virtual meetings, trainings, etc.

Accessing Zoom

1. Press the START key and search your device for ZOOM (the app should be pushed to

your computer).

NOTE: If the app does NOT appear, access the installer file here and click through the installer wizard.

2. After locating or installing the ZOOM application, click the SIGN IN button. Next choose SIGN IN WITH GOOGLE. 

3. Enter your GOOGLE LOGIN CREDENTIALS and click ALLOW.

Chatting with Zoom

1. Click CHAT at the top of the ZOOM screen:

SEARCH for the desired contact in the SEARCH field:

2. NOTE: The newly-added contact will appear in the RECENT area on the left side:

3. Use the middle CHAT window pane to chat:

More help can be found at:

https://support.zoom.us